diff --git a/packages/tui/src/component/dialog-config.tsx b/packages/tui/src/component/dialog-config.tsx
index 01527cba537..6c9df2b505d 100644
--- a/packages/tui/src/component/dialog-config.tsx
+++ b/packages/tui/src/component/dialog-config.tsx
@@ -10,6 +10,8 @@ type Setting = {
   title: string
   category: string
   path: string[]
+  /** Shown below the list while the setting is selected, under the "new-designs" experiment. */
+  description: string
   default: unknown
   values?: readonly unknown[]
   labels?: readonly string[]
@@ -27,6 +29,7 @@ export const settings: Setting[] = [
     title: "Theme",
     category: "Appearance",
     path: ["theme", "name"],
+    description: "Color theme used across the interface",
     default: "opencode",
     keywords: ["color scheme", "colors"],
     open: (dialog) =>
@@ -38,6 +41,7 @@ export const settings: Setting[] = [
     title: "Color mode",
     category: "Appearance",
     path: ["theme", "mode"],
+    description: "Dark or light variant, or follow the system",
     default: "system",
     values: ["system", "dark", "light"],
     keywords: ["dark mode", "light mode", "system theme"],
@@ -46,6 +50,7 @@ export const settings: Setting[] = [
     title: "Animations",
     category: "Appearance",
     path: ["animations"],
+    description: "Whether spinners and transitions animate",
     default: false,
     values: [false, true],
     labels: ["off", "on"],
@@ -55,6 +60,7 @@ export const settings: Setting[] = [
     title: "Sidebar",
     category: "Session",
     path: ["session", "sidebar"],
+    description: "Whether the sidebar shows when there is room",
     default: "auto",
     values: ["hide", "auto"],
     keywords: ["side panel"],
@@ -63,6 +69,7 @@ export const settings: Setting[] = [
     title: "Scrollbar",
     category: "Session",
     path: ["session", "scrollbar"],
+    description: "Whether a scrollbar is shown next to the chat",
     default: false,
     values: [false, true],
     labels: ["off", "on"],
@@ -72,6 +79,7 @@ export const settings: Setting[] = [
     title: "Thinking",
     category: "Session",
     path: ["session", "thinking"],
+    description: "Whether model thinking is shown in the chat",
     default: "hide",
     values: ["hide", "show"],
     keywords: ["reasoning", "chain of thought"],
@@ -80,6 +88,7 @@ export const settings: Setting[] = [
     title: "Markdown",
     category: "Session",
     path: ["session", "markdown"],
+    description: "Whether chat markdown is rendered or shown as source",
     default: "rendered",
     values: ["source", "rendered"],
     keywords: ["syntax", "concealment", "rendering"],
@@ -88,6 +97,7 @@ export const settings: Setting[] = [
     title: "Tool grouping",
     category: "Session",
     path: ["session", "grouping"],
+    description: "Whether consecutive reads and searches are grouped",
     default: "auto",
     values: ["none", "auto"],
     keywords: ["transcript", "messages", "reads", "searches"],
@@ -96,6 +106,7 @@ export const settings: Setting[] = [
     title: "Verbosity",
     category: "Session",
     path: ["session", "verbosity"],
+    description: "How much tool activity is shown in the chat",
     default: "medium",
     values: ["low", "medium", "high"],
     keywords: ["detail", "activity", "summary", "transcript"],
@@ -104,6 +115,7 @@ export const settings: Setting[] = [
     title: "Transcript images",
     category: "Session",
     path: ["session", "image_preview"],
+    description: "Whether images are shown in the chat",
     default: false,
     values: [false, true],
     labels: ["off", "on"],
@@ -113,6 +125,7 @@ export const settings: Setting[] = [
     title: "TPS",
     category: "Session",
     path: ["session", "tps"],
+    description: "Whether tokens per second are shown for responses",
     default: true,
     values: [false, true],
     labels: ["off", "on"],
@@ -122,6 +135,7 @@ export const settings: Setting[] = [
     title: "New session location",
     category: "Session",
     path: ["session", "new_location"],
+    description: "Directory new sessions start in",
     default: "launch",
     values: ["launch", "inherit"],
     labels: ["launch directory", "active session"],
@@ -131,6 +145,7 @@ export const settings: Setting[] = [
     title: "Permissions",
     category: "Session",
     path: ["session", "permissions"],
+    description: "Whether permission requests ask you or auto accept",
     default: "prompt",
     values: ["prompt", "autoaccept"],
     labels: ["prompt", "auto accept"],
@@ -140,6 +155,7 @@ export const settings: Setting[] = [
     title: "Mode",
     category: "Tabs",
     path: ["tabs", "mode"],
+    description: "Whether sessions open in tabs",
     default: "auto",
     values: ["off", "on", "auto"],
   },
@@ -147,6 +163,7 @@ export const settings: Setting[] = [
     title: "Scope",
     category: "Tabs",
     path: ["tabs", "scope"],
+    description: "Whether tabs are per directory or shared everywhere",
     default: "cwd",
     values: ["cwd", "global"],
     labels: ["current directory", "global"],
@@ -155,6 +172,7 @@ export const settings: Setting[] = [
     title: "Layout",
     category: "Tabs",
     path: ["tabs", "layout"],
+    description: "Whether tabs run along the top or down the side",
     default: "horizontal",
     values: ["horizontal", "vertical"],
     keywords: ["sidebar", "orientation", "left"],
@@ -163,6 +181,7 @@ export const settings: Setting[] = [
     title: "Indicators",
     category: "Tabs",
     path: ["tabs", "indicators"],
+    description: "Whether tabs show status icons or always numbers",
     default: "status",
     values: ["status", "numbers"],
     labels: ["status icons", "always show numbers"],
@@ -172,6 +191,7 @@ export const settings: Setting[] = [
     title: "Layout",
     category: "Diffs",
     path: ["diffs", "view"],
+    description: "Whether diffs are side by side or in one column",
     default: "auto",
     values: ["auto", "split", "unified"],
     keywords: ["diff layout", "split diff", "unified diff"],
@@ -180,6 +200,7 @@ export const settings: Setting[] = [
     title: "Wrapping",
     category: "Diffs",
     path: ["diffs", "wrap"],
+    description: "Whether long lines in diffs wrap",
     default: "word",
     values: ["none", "word"],
     keywords: ["diff wrap", "word wrap", "line wrap"],
@@ -188,6 +209,7 @@ export const settings: Setting[] = [
     title: "File tree",
     category: "Diffs",
     path: ["diffs", "tree"],
+    description: "Whether a file tree is shown next to diffs",
     default: true,
     values: [false, true],
     labels: ["off", "on"],
@@ -197,6 +219,7 @@ export const settings: Setting[] = [
     title: "Single patch",
     category: "Diffs",
     path: ["diffs", "single"],
+    description: "Whether diffs show one file at a time",
     default: false,
     values: [false, true],
     labels: ["off", "on"],
@@ -206,6 +229,7 @@ export const settings: Setting[] = [
     title: "Scroll speed",
     category: "Input",
     path: ["scroll", "speed"],
+    description: "How far each scroll step moves",
     default: 3,
     step: 0.25,
     min: 0.25,
@@ -217,6 +241,7 @@ export const settings: Setting[] = [
     title: "Acceleration",
     category: "Input",
     path: ["scroll", "acceleration"],
+    description: "Whether scrolling speeds up the faster you scroll",
     default: false,
     values: [false, true],
     labels: ["off", "on"],
@@ -226,6 +251,7 @@ export const settings: Setting[] = [
     title: "Mouse",
     category: "Input",
     path: ["mouse"],
+    description: "Whether the interface responds to the mouse",
     default: true,
     values: [false, true],
     labels: ["off", "on"],
@@ -235,6 +261,7 @@ export const settings: Setting[] = [
     title: "Editor context",
     category: "Input",
     path: ["prompt", "editor"],
+    description: "Whether your editor's selection is added to prompts",
     default: true,
     values: [false, true],
     labels: ["off", "on"],
@@ -244,6 +271,7 @@ export const settings: Setting[] = [
     title: "Large pastes",
     category: "Input",
     path: ["prompt", "paste"],
+    description: "Whether large pastes are summarized or shown in full",
     default: "compact",
     values: ["compact", "full"],
     keywords: ["paste summary", "clipboard", "pasted content"],
@@ -252,6 +280,7 @@ export const settings: Setting[] = [
     title: "Image previews",
     category: "Input",
     path: ["prompt", "image_preview"],
+    description: "Whether attached images are previewed in the prompt",
     default: false,
     values: [false, true],
     labels: ["off", "on"],
@@ -261,6 +290,7 @@ export const settings: Setting[] = [
     title: "Leader timeout",
     category: "Input",
     path: ["leader", "timeout"],
+    description: "How long the leader key waits for the next key",
     default: 2000,
     step: 250,
     min: 250,
@@ -272,6 +302,7 @@ export const settings: Setting[] = [
     title: "Notifications",
     category: "Alerts",
     path: ["attention", "notifications"],
+    description: "Whether to notify when a session needs attention",
     default: false,
     values: [false, true],
     labels: ["off", "on"],
@@ -281,6 +312,7 @@ export const settings: Setting[] = [
     title: "Sounds",
     category: "Alerts",
     path: ["attention", "sound"],
+    description: "Whether a sound plays when a session needs attention",
     default: false,
     values: [false, true],
     labels: ["off", "on"],
@@ -290,6 +322,7 @@ export const settings: Setting[] = [
     title: "Volume",
     category: "Alerts",
     path: ["attention", "volume"],
+    description: "Volume of alert sounds",
     default: 0.4,
     step: 0.1,
     min: 0,
@@ -301,6 +334,7 @@ export const settings: Setting[] = [
     title: "Release highlights",
     category: "Alerts",
     path: ["highlights"],
+    description: "Whether release highlights are shown after an update",
     default: true,
     values: [false, true],
     labels: ["off", "on"],
@@ -310,6 +344,7 @@ export const settings: Setting[] = [
     title: "Window title",
     category: "Terminal",
     path: ["terminal", "title"],
+    description: "Whether the window title shows the current session",
     default: true,
     values: [false, true],
     labels: ["off", "on"],
@@ -319,6 +354,7 @@ export const settings: Setting[] = [
     title: "Copy behavior",
     category: "Terminal",
     path: ["terminal", "copy"],
+    description: "Whether selecting text copies it",
     default: process.platform === "win32" ? "manual" : "select",
     values: ["manual", "select"],
     keywords: ["selection", "clipboard"],
@@ -327,6 +363,7 @@ export const settings: Setting[] = [
     title: "Developer tools",
     category: "Debug",
     path: ["debug", "devtools"],
+    description: "Whether the developer tools bar is shown",
     default: false,
     values: [false, true],
     labels: ["off", "on"],
@@ -380,6 +417,7 @@ export function DialogConfig(props: { current?: string }) {
         display(setting)
       ),
       footerOverhang: newDesigns() ? 2 : undefined,
+      detail: newDesigns() ? setting.description : undefined,
       value: index,
     })),
   )
@@ -412,7 +450,11 @@ export function DialogConfig(props: { current?: string }) {
       searchInTitle
       titlePlaceholder="Search settings"
       options={options()}
-      current={current}
+      // Under new designs the opening setting is focused without the current-item marker; changing a value keeps the
+      // selection where it is.
+      current={newDesigns() ? undefined : current}
+      focusTarget={newDesigns() ? current : undefined}
+      preserveSelection={newDesigns()}
       filterThreshold={0.7}
       onMove={(option) => setSelected(option.value)}
       onSelect={(option) => {
diff --git a/packages/tui/src/ui/dialog-select.tsx b/packages/tui/src/ui/dialog-select.tsx
index 996f3263257..c298c8d40ce 100644
--- a/packages/tui/src/ui/dialog-select.tsx
+++ b/packages/tui/src/ui/dialog-select.tsx
@@ -114,8 +114,9 @@ export interface DialogSelectOption<T = any> {
   gutter?: (color: RGBA) => JSX.Element
   margin?: JSX.Element
   /**
-   * Shown below the list while this option is selected, under the "new-designs" experiment. A function is called
-   * each time the option becomes selected, because a rendered element cannot be shown again once it is removed.
+   * Shown below the list while this option is selected, under the "new-designs" experiment. A string is shown in muted
+   * text. A function is called each time the option becomes selected, because a rendered element cannot be shown again
+   * once it is removed.
    */
   detail?: string | (() => JSX.Element)
   onSelect?: (ctx: DialogContext) => void
@@ -838,7 +839,7 @@ export function DialogSelect<T>(props: DialogSelectProps<T>) {
                 when={detailView()}
                 keyed
                 fallback={
-                  <text fg={theme.text.faint} wrapMode="word">
+                  <text fg={theme.text.muted} wrapMode="word">
                     {detailText() || " "}
                   </text>
                 }